Number of the records: 1  

Functionally distinct assembly of vascular plants colonizing alpine cushions suggests their vulnerability to climate change

  1. 1.
    SYSNO ASEP0510913
    Document TypeJ - Journal Article
    R&D Document TypeJournal Article
    Subsidiary JČlánek ve WOS
    TitleFunctionally distinct assembly of vascular plants colonizing alpine cushions suggests their vulnerability to climate change
    Author(s) Doležal, Jiří (BU-J) RID, ORCID
    Dvorský, Miroslav (BU-J) ORCID, RID
    Kopecký, Martin (BU-J) RID, ORCID
    Altman, Jan (BU-J) RID, ORCID
    Mudrák, Ondřej (BU-J) RID, ORCID
    Čapková, Kateřina (BU-J) ORCID, RID
    Řeháková, Klára (BU-J) RID, ORCID
    Macek, Martin (BU-J) ORCID, RID, SAI
    Liancourt, Pierre (BU-J) RID, ORCID
    Source TitleAnnals of Botany. - : Oxford University Press - ISSN 0305-7364
    Roč. 123, č. 4 (2019), s. 569-578
    Number of pages10 s.
    Languageeng - English
    CountryGB - United Kingdom
    Keywordsalpine cushion plants ; competition and facilitation ; plant traits
    Subject RIVEA - Cell Biology
    OECD categoryBiology (theoretical, mathematical, thermal, cryobiology, biological rhythm), Evolutionary biology
    R&D ProjectsGA17-19376S GA ČR - Czech Science Foundation (CSF)
    Method of publishingOpen access
    Institutional supportBU-J - RVO:67985939
    UT WOS000462548800001
    EID SCOPUS85062984715
    DOI10.1093/aob/mcy207
    AnnotationAlpine cushion plants can initially facilitate other species during ecological succession, but later on can be negatively affected by their development, especially when beneficiaries possess traits allowing them to overrun their host. This can be reinforced by accelerated warming favouring competitively strong species over cold-adapted cushion specialists. However, little empirical research has addressed the trait-based mechanisms of these interactions. The ecological strategies of plants colonizing the cushion plant Thylacospermum caespitosum (Caryophyllaceae), a dominant pioneer of subnival zones, were studied in the Western Himalayas. To assess whether the cushion colonizers are phylogenetically and functionally distinct, 1668 vegetation samples were collected, both in open ground outside the cushions and inside their live and dead canopies, in two mountain ranges, Karakoram and Little Tibet. More than 50 plant traits related to growth, biomass allocation and resource acquisition were measured for target species, and the phylogenetic relationships of these species were studied [or determined]. Species-based trait–environment analysis with phylogenetic correction showed that in both mountain ranges Thylacospermum colonizers are phylogenetically diverse but functionally similar and are functionally different from species preferring bare soil outside cushions. Successful colonizers are fast-growing, clonal graminoids and forbs, penetrating the cushion by rhizomes and stolons. They have higher root-to-shoot ratios, leaf nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, and soil moisture and nutrient demands, sharing the syndrome of competitive species with broad elevation ranges typical of the late stages of primary succession. In contrast, the species from open ground have traits typical of stress-tolerant specialists from high and dry environments. Species colonizing tight cushions of T. caespitosum are competitively strong graminoids and herbaceous perennials from alpine grasslands. Since climate change in the Himalayas favours these species, highly specialized subnival cushion plants may face intense competition and a greater risk of decline in the future.
    WorkplaceInstitute of Botany
    ContactMartina Bartošová, martina.bartosova@ibot.cas.cz, ibot@ibot.cas.cz, Tel.: 271 015 242 ; Marie Jakšová, marie.jaksova@ibot.cas.cz, Tel.: 384 721 156-8
    Year of Publishing2020
    Electronic addresshttp://hdl.handle.net/11104/0301274
Number of the records: 1  

  This site uses cookies to make them easier to browse. Learn more about how we use cookies.